Steve Fonyo, 56, remembered as troubled Canadian ‘hero’

By The Canadian Press and Claire Fenton

Steve Fonyo, who lost his leg to cancer as a child and ran a marathon across Canada to raise millions for cancer research, has died.

He was 56.

Fonyo’s niece Melody Kruppa says Fonyo had what appeared to be a seizure in hotel room in Burnaby, B.C. on Friday and paramedics could not revive him.

Fonyo lost a leg to cancer when he was 12 and became a national hero in 1985 after completing a Canada-wide marathon to raise money for cancer research, five years after Terry Fox attempted the same thing.

Fonyo was appointed an officer of the Order of Canada in 1985 at the age of 19 — the youngest person to receive the honour at the time.

Steve Fonyo archive

An image shown in the Steve Fonyo documentary “Hope” which captured his life after the cross-Canada marathon which ended in Victoria after 14 months on the road.

“He was my hero and also what I respected about him is he had a lot of difficulties but he kept going, he persevered,” Kruppa said.

But his membership was terminated in 2009 following multiple criminal convictions.

He had battled cocaine addiction and depression.

The decision sparked public outcry, with critics saying at the time he should be remembered as a hero despite his struggles later in life.

He had worked as a mechanic later in life, and had starred in a documentary film called “Hope” which told the story of his marathon, and his efforts to turn his life around following his troubled past.

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